— NSW South Coast —

20 Top Tours: Montague Island Tour

Gail Liston has hit the road and distilled her extensive travel knowledge to bring us the 20 Top Tours from all around Australia.

Once the harbinger of sailing vessels plying their coastal trade, Montague Island is now a nature reserve accessible to us mainlanders to gallivant up and down exploring the rugged coastline in search of evidence of its Aboriginal, maritime and abundant natural history. The 80-hectare island lies eight kilometres off the NSW south coast adjacent to the sleepy fishing village of Narooma. Here fur seals, dolphins, turtles and a healthy colony of Little Penguins call the rocky outcrop home, and humpbacks and other whale species often break their annual southern migration to take advantage of the lee shore. Fed by the East Australian Current, the waters surrounding Montague are teaming with fish and other sea creatures, so there’s plenty of marine life action to see when crossing the channel. Bring a jacket, because even in summer the weather can change quickly – which explains why there has been a lighthouse on the island’s highest point for 125 years.